L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, JANUARY 27, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 4 MAURO APRILE ZANETTI NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS " What an emotion to b e a b l e t o c o n - tribute to the devel- opment of an inter- n a t i o n a l c u l t u r a l i n s t i t u t i o n s u c h a s t h e Teatro del Maggio Musi- cale Fiorentino. When I was 15, I fell in love with opera and classical music by listening to Tebaldi singing in La Bohème. And what a privilege and great honor n o w t o s e e m y n a m e a n d that of my father humbly n e x t t o t h a t o f m a e s t r o Zubin Mehta, who dedi- cated more than half a cen- tury of his life to this presti- g i o u s F l o r e n t i n e institution." Italian Ameri- can philanthropist Maria Manetti Shrem has just made an important donation for the inauguration of the n e w A u d i t o r i u m o f t h e P a r c o d e l l a M u s i c a i n Firenze (Italy): half a mil- lion euros. The Tuscan capi- tal will finally have a theater d e d i c a t e d t o s y m p h o n i c music. "When Superinten- dent Alexander Pereira and mayor Dario Nardella a s k e d m e l a s t O c t o b e r t o h e l p t h e m c o m p l e t e t h i s w o n d e r f u l p r o j e c t i n m y beloved Firenze, my heart i m m e d i a t e l y o p e n e d u p . E v e n t h o u g h m y c h a r i t y budget for 2021 had already been allocated, I decided to make this exceptional dona- t i o n . I w a s p a r t i c u l a r l y pleased to learn that, imme- diately after our meeting, Pereira, who had flown with the mayor to Dubai for the Expo, managed to collect other donations by leverag- ing mine." In a caftan created for her by her favorite haute cou- ture and handmade in Italy designers, Dolce & Gabbana, Maria comes and goes talk- ing to me in her living room that overlooks San Francisco Bay, from the Golden Gate Bridge to Alcatraz, all the w a y t o t h e s o f t h i l l s o f B e r k e l e y . H e r s i l h o u e t t e magically "fits" like a dia- dem between two paintings from the precious family col- lection: a Francis Bacon from 1957, Gorilla Skull, and a P a b l o P i c a s s o f r o m 1964, Femme nue couchée, jouant avec un chat. "Now the most important role of my life is to motivate young people, to support both the talented and the ones most in need, dedicating myself c o m p l e t e l y t o p h i l a n - thropy—Maria points out— inspiring people who are even wealthier than me to do charity, because I firmly believe that the art of living is the art of giving. And I prefer to give back with my warm hands and not with my cold ones, after pass- ing." Last October, Maria went t o F l o r e n c e f o r a v e r y intense week that saw her involved day after day on several fronts. It all began with the inauguration of the p r e v i e w o f J e f f K o o n s ' e x h i b i t i o n , S h i n e , w h e r e Maria chaired the special evening as the main sup- porter. Two days later, in another ceremony held in the enchanting Salone dei Cinquecento, the Italian A m e r i c a n p h i l a n t h r o p i s t r e c e i v e d t h e " P r e m i o Rinascimento +" along with other dignitaries who have distinguished them- selves in international art collecting. Maria, on this occasion, represented the voice of philanthropy, fol- l o w i n g i n t o t h e s t e p s , t h r o u g h h e r 3 6 0 - d e g r e e c h a r i t a b l e a c t i v i t y , w i t h which she has been support- ing the arts for over a quar- t e r o f a c e n t u r y , o f t h e noblest Medicean tradition. "In my life, I recognize three g r e a t m o m e n t s " – M a r i a declared, receiving the prize with special emotion, under the 42 imposing paintings h a r m o n i z e d b y G i o r g i o Vasari half a millennium e a r l i e r — " T h e f i r s t o n e i s essential for education and learning; the second one is dedicated to commitment to very hard work; and, finally, the third one when, having perhaps achieved an impor- tant success, you can give back to others, helping both the talented, and less fortu- nate among us." In addition to art collect- ing, Manetti Shrem has also c r e a t e d a m u s e u m a t U C Davis in California, with an area dedicated to practice, a s i t w a s c u s t o m a r y i n Florentine "botteghe del- l'arte," reestablishing a 60- years-long artistic tradition involving some of the most i m p o r t a n t n a m e s i n t h e c o n t e m p o r a r y a r t s c e n e , i n c l u d i n g W a y n e Thiebaud, Manuel Neri, B r u c e N a u m a n , a n d Robert Arneson, just to name a few. T o d a y , M a r i a M a n e t t i S h r e m a n d h e r h u s b a n d Jan Shrem support about 3 0 c h a r i t a b l e p r o g r a m s between the United States, the UK, and Italy, active in many sectors. They offer art programs at UC Davis to host for 3 years 18 artists in r e s i d e n c e , a s w e l l a s exchange programs with the Royal Drawing School in L o n d o n ; t h e y p r o m o t e Italian language and music teaching in American public schools, and symphonic and operatic music between the Met Opera in New York City, the San Francisco O p e r a , t h e D a v i e s Symphony Hall in San F r a n c i s c o , the M a g g i o Musicale Fiorentino, the N a p a F e s t , C a l Performances, KQED Public Television arts program- m i n g , a n d K Q E D P u b l i c Radio; they support muse- u m s s u c h a s P a l a z z o Continued to page 6 Maria Manetti Shrem smiles in the new Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. She contributed to its renovation with a generous donation (Photo: Bloom17/ManettiShrem/Drew Altizer Archive) Maria Manetti Shrem — The charismatic philanthropist of the two worlds, a truly inspiring force

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